Sarcopenia: an overview on current definitions, diagnosis and treatment

Sarcopenia, the progressive and generalized loss of skeletal muscle mass and strength/function associated with aging, increases the risk of a vast array of adverse health outcomes, including falls, morbidity, loss of independence, disability, and mortality. As such, sarcopenia poses a huge socioeconomic burden in developed countries. The development and implementation of effective interventions against sarcopenia is therefore a public health priority. A preliminary, fundamental step in such a process entails the agreement of researchers, healthcare professionals and policy-makers around a unique operational definition of sarcopenia. This will facilitate the framing of a definite clinical entity to be incorporated in standard practice, the understanding of the underlying pathophysiology, and the identification of biological targets for drug development.